Coalhouse Walker Jr.

A detailed Summary of Coalhouse Walker Jr.


In the novel Ragtime, the character Coalhouse Walker Jr. turns to a life of violence after an incident procured by a bunch of racist volunteer firefighters. The Emerald Isle volunteer firefighter staff vandalized Coalhouse's car, when they detained him in order to make him pay a toll for passage on their road. Coalhouse is a black pianist, who in general was a very humble and obedient man, until that incident made him out to be a depraved killer. His change from a calm man into a violent one was also furthered by the death of his fiancee Sarah, who was killed by the Vice-President's bodyguards. The combination of events, both the loss of his future wife and the vandalizing of his custom-made car made Coalhouse turn to violence as a solution to his problems.

The author the novel, E.L. Doctorow uses this incident to poi


Doctorow also tries to balance the attitude towards Coalhouse's actions by offering other perspectives, if only a few, to the destruction of the firehouses. On page 176 he offers Father's strong and adamant thoughts, "Nothing under haven can excuse the killing men and the destruction of property in this manner." The same idea can be seen in an editorial written about the killings, "...[Coalhouse should] accept the principle that any man who takes the law into his own hands...defames the same justice he seeks to enforce" (201). The small viewpoint of condemnation in the book shows to us that Doctorow believes Coalhouse acted correctly.

nt out the extreme racial discrimination and ignorance of the white populace in the early 1900's. This occurrence is a harsh reminder of how the black people were persecuted in earlier ti

Some common words found in the essay are:
Willie Conklin, Emerald Isle, Walker Jr, EL Doctorow, , character coalhouse walker, Coalhouse Walker, walker jr, coalhouse walker jr, political tool, character coalhouse, coalhouse walker, el doctorow,

Approximate Word count = 556
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

join now Save Paper

Related Essays

  • Ragtime ... In hoping to expose the racist attitudes of America, Doctorow exposes the unnamed family to the man Coalhouse Walker Jr. Coalhouse Walker Jr. ... 1764 words
  • ragtime ... dozens of stories and how each one somehow relates to another, like in the novel, the film is mostly concerned with the story of Coalhouse Walker, Jr., a black ... 1169 words
  • RAGTIME by EL Doctorow ... Motheramp39s Younger Brother is a fanatic who later leads an armed band in the army of Coalhouse Walker, Jr., and ultimately escapes to Mexico afther Walkeramp39s ... 2642 words
  • NoneProvided ... peo ple that will take place in the play. Gistaro 3 The character that was most appealing to me was Coalhouse Walker Jr. His ... 779 words

Professional Essays

  • Remember the Titans ampamp Ragtime ... situations and characters in the movie including reallife characters and fictional characters such as the talented black ragtime pianist Coalhouse Walker, Jr. ... 502 words
  • Remember the Titans ... situations and characters in the movie including reallife characters and fictional characters such as the talented black ragtime pianist Coalhouse Walker, Jr. ... 502 words


Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

  • "Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
    Jack M.
  • "With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
    Brian P.
  • "I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
    Sara J.
  • "I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
    Rachel W.
  • "I love this site!!!"
    Marie N.
Home Join Now Support
Acceptable Use Policy About us FAQ
All papers are for research and reference purposes only!
© 2002-2009 DirectEssays.com. All Rights Reserved.